Monday, April 25, 2016

NETA 2016

Another NETA Conference is officially in the books, but as always, the learning doesn't stop at the Century Link Center. Here is a quick collection of how my time was spent learning this year at NETA 2016.

I presented three sessions this year and have linked the slides and resources for each.

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Learn about lessons for education gained from my personal experiences playing a TV Game Show - Family Feud! Google slides with notes: https://goo.gl/R7aJRU

As always, the NETA Keynotes were first-rate. This year they featured "NebEdTalks" - shorter style Nebraska Education "TED Talks" - from 4 different presenters. Leading off was Bob Dillon, Director of BrightBytes Institute who reminded us to slow down, notice and appreciate more.

Jennie Mageira, however, encouraged us to get motivated to let go and take risks with her talk centered around "Courageous Edventures."

Day 2 Keynotes included Rafranz Davis on Diversity in Education and Nebraska native, Tony Vincent, who encouraged us to "Reset the Presets."

For me professionally, there were too many valuable sessions to even begin to list. However I did see many common themes. Over and over again, we were reminded in the power of failure- both for our learners and for ourselves professionally. "Play" and gamification, both in teaching and in PD were repeated frequently. Google Cardboard and the MakerSpace/Maker movement were also a common interest for participants. Blended Learning continues to be an important topic for schools as well, and NETA provided numerous sessions and resources for it.

Additional personal highlights for me came from secondary experiences related to NETA. I participated in a BreakoutEDU session and thoroughly enjoyed the collaborative challenge of breaking out of Dr. Johnson's Lab. The educational opportunities that exist with this concept excite me for schools. Learn more at breakoutedu.com.

NETA also sponsored its first ever 5K fun run/walk. We woke up early on Friday morning to take a short run across the bridge into Iowa with fellow NETA participants. Again, sometimes it is the peripheral experiences that provide the richest learning opportunities.

To follow some of the many tweets from #NETA16, check out this Twitter archive - rich with links and commentary.